Reactivity of [trans-R₂MoO(NNPhR′)(o-phen)] toward R′PhNNH₂ and R′PhNNH₃⁺ Cl^-, R = Me, Ph and R′ = Me, Ph. X-ray structure of [trans-MeClMoO(NNPh₂)(o-phen)]

The reactivities of [trans-R₂MoO(NNPhR′)(o-phen)], R = R′ = Me (1); R = Me, R′ = Ph (2); R = Ph, R′ = Me (3); R = R′ = Ph (4), toward (i) neutral 1,1-disubstituted hydrazines, R′PhNNH₂ and (ii) 1,1-disubstituted hydrazine hydrochlorides, R′PhNNH₂· HCl, R′ = Me, Ph, were studied in acetonitrile. In the first case, no condensation reaction of the free oxo group was observed under different experimental conditions. In the second case, using a 1: 1 precursor/hydrazine hydrochloride molar ratio, the oxo group was also unreactive, instead one methyl or phenyl group bonded to molybdenum was displaced as methane or benzene and was subsequently substituted by one chloride ligand affording complexes formulated as [trans-RClMoO(NNPhR′)(o-phen)], R = R′ = Me (5); R = Me, R′ = Ph (6); R = Ph, R′ = Me, (7)·MeCN; R = R′ = Ph, (8)·MeCN. Finally, when a 1:2 precursor/hydrazine hydrochloride molar ratio was used, both methyl and phenyl groups were substituted affording complexes formulated as [trans-Cl₂MoO(NNPhR′)(o-phen)], R′ = Me (9), R = Ph (10). The new organometallic compounds were characterised by IR, UV-Vis and ¹H NMR spectroscopy while the crystal and molecular structure of 6 was determined by X-ray diffraction analysis.